Sergeant Suffers Sudden Cardiac Death While On Duty – Michigan

Details

• Personal Author:
  Baldwin, Tommy N. ; Hales, Thomas R.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Description:
  Death in the Line of Duty…a Summary of a NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation
  
  On November 18, 2015, a 49-year old fire department sergeant (the "SGT") working a 24-hour shift responded to one call in the afternoon. Upon returning to the fire station, the SGT became ill, vomited, and retreated to his bunkroom. He remained there the rest of his shift. When the next crew arrived at 0700 hours the next day, they found the SGT unresponsive in his bunkroom. A paramedic in the fire station checked the SGT. His vital signs indicated that he had been dead for several hours. The paramedic notified dispatch and medical control were notified. A medical examiner responded to the fire station and pronounced the SGT dead. The death certificate and the autopsy report were completed by the Assistant Medical Examiner. The cause of death was listed as "hypertensive cardiovascular disease. "Liver cirrhosis" was noted as a contributing factor. The SGT's hypertensive cardiovascular disease was undiagnosed before this incident. Key Recommendations: 1. Provide annual medical evaluations to all fire fighters consistent with NFPA 1582, Standard on Comprehensive Occupational Medical Program for Fire Departments, to identify fire fighters at increased risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). 2. Perform symptom-limiting exercise stress tests (ESTs) on fire fighters at increased risk for CHD. 3. Ensure that fire fighters are cleared for return to duty by a physician knowledgeable about the physical demands of fire fighting, the personal protective equipment used by fire fighters, and the components of NFPA 1582. The following recommendations address general safety and health issues and would not have prevented the SGT's death: 1. Perform an annual physical ability evaluation 2. Phase in a mandatory comprehensive wellness and fitness program for fire fighters
  
  
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular System Emergency Responders Environmental Exposure Firefighters Hazardous Substances Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Cardiac Function Cardiopulmonary Function Cardiovascular Function Cardiovascular System Emergency-responders Exposure Levels Fire-fighters Health Effects Health Hazards Medical Examinations Medical Fitness Evaluation OSHA Region 5 Personal Protection Personal Protective Equipment Physical Fitness Physiology Risk Factors

  More +
• FACE - Firefighter:
  Cause of Death: Medical ; Cardiovascular: Heart Attack (Myocardial Infarction, Coronary Artery Disease and Coronary Vascular Disease) ; Non-Cardiac: Miscellaneous Medical COD
• Series:
  Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Subseries:
  Death in the Line of Duty Report
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHFFFACEF201602
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Report
• Place as Subject:
  Michigan ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-16
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049336
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2017-101429
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE F2016-02, 2016 Aug ; :1-16
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• NORA Priority Area:
  Public Safety
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  92 - Public Administration - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  2015/11/18
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:dfa072b02588f2f8774e5c1eafe9bf97f2059a30b5bb22c3b19c21d93dde7cd66965d79d12c2f994419d021f82121a27ad3a0665afc992767a8abfe88e74c96f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/163392/cdc_163392_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 332.80 KB ]